


Dabble

by DerKnochenbrecher



Category: Haikyuu!!, Pet Shop of Horrors
Genre: AU of some form or another - Freeform, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-23
Updated: 2016-01-16
Packaged: 2018-05-08 18:16:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 11,971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5507906
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DerKnochenbrecher/pseuds/DerKnochenbrecher
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In the heart of Kabuki-chou, there is a store where dreams are sold in the form of pets. And if the buyer is very lucky, nothing bad will come of this.<br/>Hoarfrost: Yaku picks up an Oriental Shorthair only too willing to sleep in the same bed as him.<br/>Horned: Akaashi winds up with a horned owl that he is pretty sure is illegal, but it’s okay because this one can totally solve all his problems for him. (Probably.)<br/>Helping Hand: Tsukishima rescues an injured crow.<br/>Humdrum: Iwaizumi ends up with a houseplant he’s pretty sure he didn’t ask for.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Hoarfrost

**Author's Note:**

> I saw a post on tumblr suggesting viewers to create something by combining their oldest and newest fandoms together. This was the result for me. I was originally aiming for something a bit more in line with the Pet Shop of Horrors series, but I ended up deviating from that. The main difference is that these will all have happy endings - or at least, a lot happier than PSoH would have it. I also elected to not have a running subplot with the Count, mainly because I don't think I could have written Wu-Fei particularly well. Instead, D will be present in each story and other characters from that series will cameo. This is written as a Haikyuu!! fic, so the focus will be on those characters and knowledge of PSoH should not be required. For those that do know the series, I tried to bring aspects of both the original and Shin, but it leans towards the latter because of the setting.
> 
> Please enjoy!

“Welcome to Count D’s Pet Shop. We have any animal you can imagine, from common creatures such as puppies to animals that barely pass the CITES. Pure-breeds and cross-breeds - we have something for everyone and anyone who passes through our doors. You may call me Count D, though that is not my real name. Please feel free to look through our pets – your life’s partner may be waiting just beyond our doors.”

 

Well, _that_ was one of the more questionable sales pitches Yaku had ever heard.

 

The person giving it was also pretty questionable: a Chinese man with jaw-length hair, heterochromatic eyes, and some sort of brocade outfit as complex as his curtains, with an air about him that suggested both mystery and danger. Exactly the sort of person who would set up shop on the thirteenth floor of a building apparently designed with the sole intent of reflecting urban China in gilt and neon. The fact that both the building and this shop were currently trussed up for Christmas, still some time away, only made the gaudiness worse.

 

Standing in the middle of this shop, Yaku couldn’t help but curse the person who had suggested he come out here. His phone was filled with texts from Kuroo telling him that, first of all, he was spending too much time inside and needed to “get a life” and, second, going on and on about the cat he had gotten from this pet shop just a few months prior. He wouldn’t stop posting pictures of the cat either, a long-haired creature that spent most of his time sleeping in ridiculous positions. Kuroo got especially excited when Kenma deigned to use him as a bed.

 

Yaku had been woken up by enough texts in the middle of the night that he’d eventually told Kuroo to cut it out – and Kuroo’s reply had been to get a cat and see how he’d like it. He said he would stop if Yaku fell in love with his own pet. Yaku had taken him up on that one, though standing here he couldn’t remember quite why. He was pretty sure he was in no situation to be adopting one. Equally unlikely was him falling head over heels with a cat like that idiot Kuroo.

 

Yaku blinked and found himself back in reality. He looked around the room, which looked more like an old woman’s living room than a pet shop, and saw no pets, and nowhere to start looking for one. But the Count was looking at him too.

 

“What is on your mind?” he asked, darkened lips curling in a smile.

 

He’d been caught.

 

“Ah, well. My friend adopted a cat from you a few months ago, and I was thinking that a cat might be a good idea?” They _were_ relatively low-maintenance pets, certainly more so than a dog and, well, maybe Kuroo was right. He did want someone – or at least, something – that would be waiting for him at home every night. “Maybe… one with a calm personality. I don’t really care if they’re purebred or not, and maybe an older cat would be better? Kittens are a bit too excitable.”

 

The Count’s smile didn’t change, but it still felt as though it did.

 

“Why don’t you step into the back with me?” he said. “I’m certain we have someone who will fulfill your every need.”

 

Yaku did, following the Count down a hallway he was pretty sure was longer than the building they were in. Then again, it was probably just an illusion of the strange wallpaper, or that weird lingering scent of incense that seemed to cover up any animal smells.

 

Eventually the Count pushed open a door, one that looked like virtually all of the other ones they had passed, indicating Yaku was to go in first.

 

That gave Yaku had to take a few minutes to stare, because the room had dozens upon dozens of cats in it. Laying around on the floor or the canopied bed, napping, playing, grooming themselves – and in every colour he’d ever seen a cat in. There were self-coloureds, tuxedos, calicos, tortoiseshells, tabbies, shaded and smoke, colour-point and ticked, in every shade of white and black and brown and orange with eyes like gemstones looking up from the sea of fur. It was actually a little overwhelming.

 

He shook his head, trying to clear it – and convince himself that what he was saying was a trick of the light or something. There was no way there were that many cats in one room. It violated any number of animal welfare laws.

 

He looked up when he heard a meow. One of the cats leapt out from the crowd, racing up to Yaku and meowing as he twined around his legs. Yaku reached down to pet him as he would any other friendly cat. This one was a short hair, with a silver coat and slightly muted tabby markings, with a long, whip-like tail and long legs. Rather cute, even with all his chirping.

 

“I see you’ve already found a partner,” Count D said. The creepy tone he had spoken with until now seemed to have disappeared, not that helped his words be any less cryptic.

 

Yaku glanced back. “But I haven’t looked around at all yet.”

 

The Count sighed, and Yaku got a chilling suspicion that he wasn’t the one the Count had been talking to.

 

“Well, you could look around at the others,” he said. “But I think you’ll find that child has chosen you already.”

 

Yaku turned back to the cat, not to sure he agreed with that system of choosing pets, especially since this one kept meowing at him. Cute or not, it would probably get annoying – and he was going to tell the Count this, when he caught sight of the cat’s eyes. They were bright green, and charming in the strangest ways. He’d heard that cats with tails like this one – long and thin – could enchant their owners into allowing a possession to occur. Maybe that was what had happened here.

 

“I think I’ll take him,” he said quietly. He gave the cat’s head a rub, folding down his ears, and the cat butted his head against Yaku’s leg, purring loudly.

 

When the Count spoke, Yaku could hear him smiling. “Wonderful. I shall get his papers ready for you.”

 

They walked back to the main room, Yaku carrying the cat. He’d been a bit worried that he’d be clawed for trying it, but instead the cat seemed to enjoy it. It looked like he’d chosen a weird one.

 

He hoped Kuroo was happy.

 

“Now, this child is the offspring of two rather popular breeders,” the Count was saying.

 

“Wait,” Yaku said. “He’s pure-bred? I don’t think I can afford that…” No matter how cute the cat in question was, his bank account came first, mostly because that was what was going to feed the two of them.

 

“You misunderstand me,” the Count said. “He comes from long and rather renowned lines, but he himself is a mixed-breed and was given to me rather than requiring the breeders to deal with him and his siblings. The others found homes quickly, but this one chose to wait. Therefore, though he has official papers, he does not have the fee that one would associate with them. By the way, his father was an Oriental and his mother a Russian Blue.”

 

Now that Yaku looked, he could see that. The cat’s ears were smaller and his head rounder than an Oriental’s, even though he had the body – and personality – of one. Well, that was certainly something. And if he didn’t come with that hefty of a price tag, then Yaku figured it was okay.

 

“Ah, if he has papers, then does he already have a name?”

 

The Count’s eyes – one purple and one gold – flickered from the paper, to the cat, to Yaku.

 

“Well, he does, but it doesn’t matter much to this child. You can name him whatever you want.”

 

Yaku shrugged. “I just thought it would be good to know. Besides, if he already has a name, what’s the point of giving him a new one?”

 

The Count smiled. “Indeed. In that case, may I suggest using the name _Lev_ for that child? It means ‘lion’ in Russian. I think if you give him a chance, you will find that he embodies his namesake rather well, even if it is not immediately apparent.”

 

“Lev,” Yaku said. The cat looked up and meowed, tail crooked in a happy manner. He seemed to like it as a name – besides, a pet with a foreign name wasn’t that unusual. And with his lines, it kind of fit. “That’ll work, I suppose.”

 

“Very well then. Lev it is. I wish you long and happy lives together. I think you’ll find that he will insist on sharing it with you.”

 

It wasn’t much longer before Yaku found himself walking home with a cat carrier in one hand, bank account only a _few_ thousand yen lighter, and a bag containing paperwork and a small box in the other. Yaku found the box something of an oddity – the Count had insisted on giving it to him without explaining what it was.

 

“Open if you begin to feel lonely in ways this child cannot seem to help,” he said by way of explanation. It wasn’t a particularly good one, but then again the Count didn’t seem to have charged him for it. Yaku didn’t even know what the box contained.

 

The mystery would have to wait, however. It was late by the time he got home, and after a quick comb through to make sure there was nothing in the apartment that could potentially harm him, he let Lev out of the cage. The cat then promptly disappeared, off to examine his new surroundings.

 

Yaku used the time to make them dinner. It was a little weird that Count D’s Pet Shop didn’t have anything other than pets for sale, he though. It didn’t matter too much, as the Count had assured him that a careful diet of human food wouldn’t be a bad thing – Yaku was still going to get actual pet food in the morning. He would have done it sooner, but everything was closed already.

 

He had set out his dinner on the table, along with a small plate with diced chicken for Lev. The cat had been out of sight for quite some time, though the occasional batting of paws made it known where he was. Yaku didn’t even know where he was, but he came running in at top speed at the sound of his name.

 

Yaku placed the plate across from him on the table, like he was setting a place for a second person. He wasn’t even sure why he did that, even as Lev leapt up onto the table. In fact, Yaku was pretty sure he had wanted to keep the cat from going on most of the furniture, including the dinner table. It didn’t look like that would be happening, though.

 

He looked over to Lev, who was sitting neatly on the table, eating with all the grace of a cat who had made himself hungry by running around like mad. Which is to say, none at all. But then he looked up at Yaku, eyes glowing green, and meowed before getting back to his food. Yaku sighed.

 

“Just for tonight,” he said. “Tomorrow, though, I’m not letting you.”

 

He turned back to his own meal, glancing between the cat and the window. It was beginning to snow. Just a little bit, enough that there might be a layer of white over everything come morning. Now that he thought about it, the interior of his house was little cold. Perhaps he’d have to find where he’d put the heater and keep it on for a while. He’d have to make sure Lev wouldn’t hurt himself on it before he could, though.

 

The cat, done with his meal, got up, stretched, and then crossed the table to lay down alongside where Yaku had lain his arm. He seemed content just to lay there, his green eyes narrowing as he began to purr.

 

“No laying on the bed, though. I draw the line there,” he told Lev. He felt like he had this backward, but he had to show his control of this situation _somehow._

 

Of course, being a cat, Lev didn’t listen to him at all. Even though Yaku had closed the door to keep him out, as he heard it creak open just as he was falling asleep, followed by footsteps louder than folklore seemed to have it. Lev jumped on the bed and crawled up next to Yaku, curling up on the blanket with his back to his human’s. Yaku didn’t have the energy to tell him off, so he found himself falling asleep to Lev’s gentle snores.

 

*

 

It didn’t take that long for Yaku to adjust to having a cat in the house, especially once he’d given up any notion of getting Lev to listen to him. The cat wandered wherever he wanted in the house, eating with Yaku at the table, sleeping on his newly cleaned clothes, getting silver hairs on everything, and bed alongside him. Or, more often, _on top_ of him, since Lev seemed to find Yaku’s chest more comfortable than anywhere else in the house.

 

Yaku would have been better with it if it weren’t for those handful of times when he would wake briefly in the night, not fully aware of his surroundings, and felt the weight of a person laying across his chest. He knew it was just Lev’s – rather small – weight confusing his sleeping brain, but it was enough to make him wonder. Even if it was just a mistake.

 

He knew it was, but still he couldn’t help but think about it – how much he wished it actually was the weight of another person, sometimes. Times like now. He sat on a corner of his bed, knees drawn up to his chest and eyes focused vaguely on the winter clouds beyond the window. Spending one of his few days off, granted to him by the New Year, feeling sorry for himself and bemoaning his own loneliness had not been part of his plan, but there wasn’t much else he felt like doing. So here he was.

 

Lev pawed up to him, meowing and butting his head into Yaku’s hand. Yaku pet his head, but quickly stopped, not feeling like putting the effort into anything.

 

Lev’s tail twitched and he ran off. Yaku bit his lip, suddenly feeling bad that even his cat had left him. Then, in a battering of feet, Lev raced back, a pair of socks in his mouth. He looked so proud as he set them down in front of his owner that Yaku had to smile. Then Lev ran off again, bringing back a hat, then a mitt, creating a pile of soft things around Yaku, and then bringing him his cellphone.

 

“I thought I told you not to touch that,” Yaku said, taking it from him.

 

He hadn’t had the chance to see Kuroo since he’d adopted Lev – they’d both been busy with work, then Kuroo had left the city to see relatives – and they probably wouldn’t see each other for a while. They had been emailing each other, however.

 

 Kuroo hadn’t kept his word at all. He was still sending Yaku pictures of Kenma at odd hours, but now Yaku could retaliate. He didn’t know if he really wanted to talk to Kuroo just then, but scrolling through the most recent images of Kenma he had sent, and the ones he’d sent of Lev in return, actually did cheer him. If nothing else, they were both incredibly photogenic cats.

 

When he looked up again, Lev was butting his head against a box Yaku had left on top of his desk – the box Count D had given him, he realised.

 

What had the Count said? To open it if he still felt lonely in ways Lev couldn’t help. Well, for the first time since then he was feeling that way, so he opened the box.

 

It contained a small pot of incense. Yaku picked it up, looking it over. He was vaguely worried it would contain some sort of drug, but instead it just smelled lightly of flowers. It was probably harmless, he figured, and dug out the matches to light it from a cupboard where he kept emergency items. And if it was some sort of questionable substance, well – at least he didn’t have work tomorrow.

 

Once lit, the smell seemed to permeate the room over the course of the evening, but never enough to annoy Yaku – or Lev, for that matter. Yaku found that a bit odd, but realised the Count would probably never suggest the use of something that would harm the pets he sold. He didn’t understand what it was for, either. Sure it was plenty relaxing, to the point where Yaku found himself going to bed early, but even as he lay there with Lev stretched out alongside him, he didn’t quite understand.

 

Yaku woke the next morning – late, because he hadn’t set an alarm – to the same smell in the room, but the bed seemed warmer. Without opening his eyes he turned around, reaching out a hand to find where on earth Lev had wound up to make it that warm, and wound up touching human skin.

 

Yaku sat up, awake now and eyes wide open. There was indeed a stranger lying in his bed, burrowed into the covers and, from what Yaku could see, not wearing any clothing.

 

“Who the hell are you?” Yaku demanded, instinctively shoving him out of the bed.

 

The stranger fell to the floor in a tangle of limbs. At least he was wearing pajama pants, whoever he was, though they were too short on him.

 

“Yaku-san, that was mean!” he said, sitting up and rubbing his head where he’d smacked it against the wall.

 

“I’m sorry,” Yaku said flatly. “But how do you know my name? And how did you get in here?”

 

“I live here…?” the stranger replied, sounding a little hurt. “You brought me home, remember? Days and days ago!” He smiled widely. “I’m Lev.”

 

“Like hell you are,” Yaku snapped. “What are you doing here?”

 

“I was sleeping with you,” he said. “I mean, I know you didn’t really want me to in the beginning, but you’ve never shoved me out of the bed like that before. You’ve got to believe me – I really _am_ Lev!”

 

Yaku could sort-of see it, the same way that anyone could see a cat in a person, especially one who looked to be almost two meters tall. But they had the same silvery hair, and the eyes were the same shade of green, not to mention those long limbs.

 

He sighed. “Say you really _were_ my cat. What are you doing here and why do you look like a person?”

 

Lev’s smile became wider, and a bit childlike. “The Count’s incense. It makes us be able to take human form, some times. I’m here to do whatever you want.”

 

“ _Mmhm_.” Well, it seemed as plausible as anything else.

 

Lev picked himself up on the bed, leaning forward and butting his head against Yaku’s hand. Exactly like his cat would have, when he wanted something.

 

“Come on, Yaku-san! Today’s another day off, so you should do something,” he said.

 

“Like what?” Yaku hoped his flat tone would indicate to him that he wasn’t interested.

 

Apparently Lev didn’t get the message. “We could go on a date,” he said. Then he sat up, like he was sure this was the best idea in the world. “Yeah, let’s do that! You look like you haven’t been on a date in forever!”

 

“H-have so!” Yaku snapped, going a bit red. Trust a cat to find a person’s sore spot. “Besides, do you really think I would want to go out on a date with my cat?”

 

Lev tugged at his arm. “Come on, it’ll be fun! Please?”

 

Well. It wasn’t like Yaku had any plans with anyone else. And he’d make sure he’d bring his cellphone with him so that he could call the police if things got weird. Or maybe just Kuroo, to curse him out.

 

“Fine, but you’re going to go into the living room while I change.”

 

“Why bother? I mean, I’ve seen you naked before.”

 

Yaku pushed him out of the bed again.

 

“Just go. And put on clothes, if you _have_ any.”

 

Lev did as he was told, though maybe a bit sullenly. Yaku found some nice clothing hidden in the back of a drawer. He tried to convince himself that it wasn’t nice because he was going on a date, but just because he wanted to be presentable when going outside. Lev was waiting on the couch in the living room, wearing – well, Yaku hadn’t half a clue as to where he’d had those clothes, but he didn’t look too bad in them. Jeans, a t-shirt, and a green parka with a fur ruff – at least he would be warm when they went outside. The railing just outside the window was covered in hoarfrost, so Yaku was sure it was going to be at least a little cold.

 

“So where are we going?” Lev asked, standing up.

 

“I don’t know – this was your idea,” Yaku said, taking a jacket off the coat stand.

 

“I don’t really know what people do on dates,” Lev said. “So let’s just go wherever you want to go!”

 

Yaku shrugged, pulling on his shoes. “I guess there’s a couple places we could go. I don’t really know how much fun they’ll be, but there’s no harm in trying, I suppose…”

 

As it turned out, this whole idea of a “date” was actually a good deal of fun, as Yaku found the day more enjoyable than he had thought he would. Lev certainly seemed to be amusing himself, tugging on Yaku’s arm to go in this direction or that, or to check out some cool thing he’d seen. He practically devoured anything put in front of him for food, which made Yaku wonder once again if Lev really was his cat. He was _sure_ he fed him more than this.

 

But the day was shockingly enjoyable if nothing else, and Yaku found himself forgetting how bad he had felt yesterday, even as they continued to stay out far later than they had originally intended. Maybe it was the coldness in the air and the small piles of snow left on the ground, or maybe it was the bright lights hanging in the trees and the crowds, but Yaku found himself pulling in closer to Lev. He wrapped Lev’s arm around his shoulders as they walked, suddenly finding himself not caring what anyone else may have thought. If Lev could have purred in his human form, he probably would have done so.

 

What had the Count said, back at the beginning of the month when he had first adopted Lev? That if given the chance, he would embody his lion namesake. Yaku wasn’t fully convinced that he did, because there didn’t seem to be much regal in this overgrown child dragging him through Ginza, but maybe if he let this continue, he’d find what the Count had been talking about.

 

After all, the Count had said that Lev would insist on sharing their lives together. And Yaku was okay with that, even if he might never say so out loud.


	2. Horned

For the seventh time that month, Akaashi woke to find himself bound in iron. He hadn’t known he had fallen asleep on his back, but he must have. He felt like he couldn’t breathe, the darkness setting in and the panic coming with it. He knew it was only his brain failing to understand that he was awake, but he could not break the bonds. He could only wait, the sound of his heart pounding distorting into unintelligible words and sounds and growls.

 

He heard the door creak open and braced himself for what was coming next. He knew what it would be, because it was always the same. And yet it always changed. Because the shadow always came closer.

 

Maybe he had seen it before, sitting on his chest and bearing down on him. But if he had, he’d forgotten what it looked like.  Now he was watching from the corner of his eye as the black drew closer. He could see two eyes in it. They might have been red.

 

It reached out with something that might have been a paw.

 

Or a hand.

 

He tried to move and the bindings tightened, crushing his chest. It was getting closer. The sound distortion was getting louder along with his heartbeat.

 

It put its paw on the bed, claws digging into the blanket, beginning to pull itself up.

 

This was only kanashibari, he told himself. He focused on his breathing. He focused on trying to move his fingers – right pinky first, then left, then pulling his hands into his fists.

 

It worked. The shadow disappeared and the distortion died down, and slowly he felt his chest loosening as his brain realised that yes, he was awake.

 

Seven incidences of sleep paralysis in a month that wasn’t over yet. Each time, he had been sure he’d fallen asleep on his side. Each time, he woke up on his back, covered in sweat, heart still pounding and the dregs of terror clinging to him like winter brought into the home.

 

If there was to be another night like that, Akaashi didn’t know how he’d handle it. Maybe it was time to figure something out – something he hadn’t tried before. That list was short, and it was getting pretty desperate. But for today, he’d concentrate on going to work.

 

The crowds were their usual bustling selves as he walked to the station and got on a train, and though they should have been at least something of a distraction they proved to be the opposite. His mind kept wandering back to the sleep paralysis.

 

To keep his mind off it, Akaashi took out his phone. He stood, swaying slightly with the motion of his commuter train, until he found a blog post talking about the author’s new pet tarantula. Since his stop was several stations away yet and the premise was interesting enough, he decided to read through it.  It was a pretty boring story – whoever it was hadn’t been looking for a pet, but when they’d gone into this pet shop in Shinjuku, the shop owner had insisted they keep the spider who seemed to have imprinted on them. The part that caught Akaashi’s eye was the gushing paragraph at the end, where they had gone on about how much the pet had changed their life, ending with a thank you to the owner, whom they called Count D.

 

It sounded ridiculous – a pet that could change your life as drastically as this one’s seemed to have. But something about it sounded appealing. Maybe it was the exoticism of the shop keeper’s name, or maybe it was how pretty the photograph that accompanied the post made the spider look. And it wasn’t like he didn’t have the money or the space for a pet. A cat, maybe, or a small dog if they had any that were well-behaved. He didn’t have any real preference at this point, and even if he went, it didn’t mean he’d actually bring a pet home. It might not help him with the paralysis, but then – hadn’t someone said that most of it was psychological stress? He was sure he remembered something like that. And the post had given the location. It wasn’t like he’d much to lose from a visit.

 

A voice announced his station and he shut off his phone. He got off work early today, so perhaps he would take a detour on his way home.

 

*

 

Kabuki-chou was loud. It was filled with people, which seemed odd because Akaashi was fairly sure it was still a workday for most people. Apparently, there were plenty who didn’t have much else to do on an afternoon like this.

 

Neo-Chinatown loomed large and bright in front of him and when he walked in, it was into a wall of warm air that smelled like snow melting off boot soles and, more distantly, of cooking oil and food. He looked around for – and found – a directory, which listed the pet shop as being on the thirteenth floor. The location kept getting odder, to Akaashi’s mind.

 

That high up in the building, away from the crowds that congregated on the lower levels, it was quieter. Not so quiet that he could actually hear himself think, but noticeable all the same.

 

At first he thought that he had missed the pet shop, then that it wasn’t open. The place had no windows and the door was closed, and the sign hanging above was written in fancy script reading _Pets and Dreams_. Well, he supposed there were worse things to name a pet shop, especially in Kabuki-chou.

 

There was a sign on the door handle that was turned to read “open” in English, so he pulled it open. As soon as he did, the smell of the mall disappeared and he was awash in a gentle floral scent, like incense. It was pleasant in its way, but it still burned at his throat and eyes. It would be okay as long as he didn’t stay here too long, and the smell didn’t cling too much to anything he might buy.

 

Before he could look around too much, he was distracted by movement. A man – a pretty one – walked up to him, a living tapestry in his finery. This must be the shop keeper the blogger had been talking about.

 

“Welcome to Count D’s Pet Shop,” he said with a bow. His red lips curled into a smile. “We sell all manner of creatures, from the smallest of purebred mice to anything you could dream. We may even have one who could help you with your troubles.”

 

Akaashi frowned. This must be one of those tricks fortune tellers used, where they gave a statement broad enough that it would mean something to anyone who heard it without it meaning much at all. Certainly most people had troubles. But the way Count D was looking at him, miss-matched eyes half-closed but direct, it seemed almost like he _did_ know.

 

“What troubles do you think those are?” he asked.

 

Count D tilted his head, hair shifting like silk. “I assure you, I haven’t a clue. Join me for tea. Perhaps if you told me, I might be able to find a partner to aid you.”

 

He didn’t much like the sound of that. “It’s nothing a pet can cure.”

 

“And yet, here you are.”

 

Akaashi had to admit that was a good point. So he explained.

 

As he talked, saying more than he should, his eyes wandered about the room. He hadn’t noticed it before, but there _were_ animals in the room. They kept to the shadows, but their eyes reflected the light of the old fashioned lamps and darkness danced as they moved. It was somewhat off-putting.

 

One patch of darkness seemed more impenetrable than the rest – he could almost see something there. It looked almost like the ghost, or whatever the kanashibari brought, in some ways. But sitting here, he felt no fear of it.

 

“I think I may very well have something that could help you,” the Count said, getting to his feet. “Won’t you come to the back with me?”

 

Akaashi did, but before he could follow the Count towards the back room, he caught sight of that strange corner of the room light didn’t seem to reach. He paused and looked closer, frowning.

 

Two large golden eyes stared back at him. A owl, its white, grey and brown feathers making it almost round, sat on a perch. The tuffs above its eyes gave it an almost devilish look, and Akaashi could have sworn that it was looking pretty pleased with itself. He stopped to stare at it, unsure what, exactly, an owl could be so pleased with.

 

The Count had also stopped in his tracks and turned. He gave a small, ragged sigh and walked up to Akaashi.

 

“Well,” he said. He sounded rather disappointed. “Is this what you want?”

 

Akaashi blinked. He was pretty sure the Count wasn’t talking to him, but he didn’t know who else he _could_ be talking too. The owl, still watching Akaashi, blinked back.

 

“I didn’t say anything…”

 

The Count sighed again. “I’m afraid you didn’t have too. This child said it all. I was keeping him for a special occasion, but it seems he’s chosen you.”

 

He lifted an arm and the owl took wing, landing on the Count’s forearm and looking plenty pleased with himself.

 

“They say that owls bring good luck and chase away the evils in the night. But they also have been called signs of death,” the Count said. “I wonder – which of the two will it be for you?”

 

What a pushy sales pitch.

 

Akaashi’s frown deepened. The owl looked back at him, eyes wide like he was trying to look cute. The light was making them sparkle. He hoped the owl knew just how ridiculous he looked.

 

“Is it… legal?” Akaashi asked.

 

Count D gave a blink that was just as owlish. “Well, I do have documentation for him, if that’s what you need…”

 

That was good enough for Akaashi. He shrugged. “I’ll take him, then.”

 

The Count smiled. The owl, though, puffed up and fluffed his wings like he was pleased.

 

*

 

D was handing the tea cups to Pon-chan to put away when the door opened. Given the slam of the door against the wall and the indelicate footfalls, he didn’t even have to turn around to know it was Wu Fei coming in to check on him.

 

“I’m afraid you’re too late for tea,” D said, turning around and giving Wu Fei the best possible smile he could muster. Pon-chan took a couple steps away from him, a disturbed look on her face, before skittering off with the dishes to leave them alone.

 

Wu Fei stared after her, only able to see a tanuki walking with tea cups balanced on its paws, and blinked before turning back to D. “I saw some kid walking away with a huge-ass cage. What did you sell him?” He sat down on one of the Count’s chairs, which he was pretty sure he hadn’t invited the man to do, but that was Wu Fei for you. “A cage that size _has_ to hold something illegal.”

 

“Not necessarily,” D replied with an elegant shrug. “Humans keep all manner of animals in enclosures that are too small. Goldfish, for example. They’re related to carp, and yet you insist on keeping them in tiny bowls. They die so soon because they simply don’t have the room to live.”

 

“Well don’t bitch at me about it. Isn’t that the advertising industry’s fault, or whatever?” He pulled out a cigarette and tried to find his lighter. D didn’t offer to help. “Or movies. After every big one with an animal, isn’t there a boom for buying them?”

 

“Yes,” D said. His tone conveyed exactly how fun that was for him and his charges. “In fact, just a couple of years ago, sanctuaries in England suddenly found themselves with more owls than they could handle, as their owners’ realised they were more work than what they saw in some film.”

 

Wu Fei frowned. “Did you sell that kid an owl.” It wasn’t so much a question.

 

“Would it matter?” D asked. “After all, it isn’t illegal to possess an owl in this country. Simply inadvisable.”

 

Wu Fei finally found his light, and clicked it on. “Shouldn’t you knock it off with the birds? You do remember the bird flu epidemic, right?”

 

“Of course I do,” D replied. “Do you?”

 

Wu Fei stopped with the lighter halfway to his cigarette. He looked as though he was having some trouble. Then he frowned. “Either way, stop it. We don’t want another epidemic in here.”

 

D sighed. Wu Fei’s insistence on dictating his shop policies was beginning to get on his nerves. “What could I possibly do to get you to leave me alone, Taizuu?”

 

Wu Fei stood up, head tilting like a tiger’s when it was about to pounce. “I want answers.”

 

But before he could say to _what_ , exactly, his phone rang. Wu Fei cursed, answered it, and after a few moments turned back to the door.

 

“We’ll continue this later,” Wu Fei said over his shoulder. He slammed the door behind him.

 

D pressed his fingers to his throbbing head, wondering if that moron would ever learn. Humans could be such a problem, sometimes, and even when they tried to do well by others they so often failed.

 

His eyes drifted over to the owl perch. It had been true that that child had been in reserve for someone else, and equally true that D wouldn’t refuse the child’s own request.

 

“I wonder if the person you chose will fare much better,” he said to no one in particular.

 

*

 

Surprisingly enough for a wild animal, the owl adapted very well to life indoors. He was also shockingly housetrained, which Akaashi discovered when experimentally let him out of the cage and he didn’t instantly destroy the house. So instead of forcing him to stay in the cage, which seemed too small in the first place, he let the bird fly about the house as he wished. The owl mostly sat on various pieces of furniture and hooted triumphantly, though never long or loud enough to annoy the neighbours.

 

A few internet searches, made a couple days after he’d been brought home and after they’d both had time to adjust, told Akaashi that the bird was a great horned owl – _amerika fushimimizuku_ , or _amerika washi bokuto_. He paused as he looked over the article to glance at the owl. Something like _Mimi_ or _Bokuto_ would probably be a good name, especially since Akaashi wasn’t the most creative sort.

 

“Bokuto?” Akaashi tried. Immediately the owl swirled his head around and blinked large golden eyes at him. “I guess that’s your name then.”

 

The owl gave a strangely cat-like hoot and preened his chest feathers. Akaashi gave a small smile. A thought occurred to him, and he turned back to the computer. After a few minutes of hazarded searches, Akaashi found what he was looking for – the blog post he’d found that had led him to Count D’s pet shop. He clicked back to the blog’s home page, intent on learning more, but that post, dated three weeks prior, was the most recent. He scrolled down, but found nothing of interest and clicked off.

 

“I guessed I’d better get ready for tomorrow,” he said out loud.

 

Bokuto gave a hoot and hopped onto Akaashi’s shoulder. Akaashi stood up, already trying to figure out what he’d need to get done in preparation for work the next day. He almost didn’t notice as Bokuto began preening his hair. The bird was surprisingly gentle about it, just as he was about perching onto Akaashi’s shoulder or arm, doing his best not to dig his talons in. In return, Akaashi tried not to jostle him to the point where he would have to, because intentional or not those talons would _hurt_.

 

As Akaashi put the rice cooker on for his lunch, it occurred to him that he hadn’t had an episode of sleep paralysis, nor really any difficulty getting to sleep, in the time since he’d brought Bokuto home. The attacks had never been a nightly occurrence, but it still felt something had changed.

 

“Is that because of you?” he asked the bird.

 

Bokuto cooed and flapped his wings. Owls generally looked rather haughty – at least to Akaashi’s eye – but Bokuto was the first that he’d seen who could look so damn _pleased_ with himself.

 

*

 

It took another week, but the paralysis returned. Akaashi’s eyes were open and the darkness seemed to be moving, pulsing as with a heartbeat. His own, he could hear – normal at first, but each second warping it. He tried to look around, knowing the shadow couldn’t be far. Last time, it had gotten a hand onto the bed. He didn’t know what it would do this time.

 

Red eyes stared out at him from the shadows. Beyond the distortion, he could hear something like claws clicking against the floor.

 

It was getting closer.

 

Akaashi tried to move his fingers – it had worked last time and had broken the spell before the shadow could touch him. But the iron bindings were too tight. They crushed his chest, forcing air from his lungs.

 

_Click. Click. Click._

_Click. Scraaatch. Click._

_Scraaaaatch._

Where was Bokuto? Akaashi found himself thinking. Wasn’t he supposed to do something about this?

 

Fear was warping his thoughts as well, he was sure. He tried to breathe deep. His lungs wouldn’t let him, and he lost the rhythm of even his regular breathing.

 

There was a tug on his blanket, and even though he knew it was only in his mind, he felt the cloth being pulled across his body.

 

Then there was a weight on the edge of the bed as the shadow pulled itself up. It fixed its eyes on Akaashi’s.

 

He felt the tendons in his arms constrict. His calf muscles felt like they were being pulled over barbed wire as the shadow climbed onto him. It opened its mouth, revealing two long incisors. Akaashi knew it would kill him if it bit him.

 

_Krrooo-ooo!!_

There was a flash of wings, and in a blur of feathers the shadow-rat was pushed off the bed.

 

The iron bindings loosened. The pain disappeared from his arms and his legs, and Akaashi sat up, breathing heavily. His heart was pounding, but only like normal.

 

There was a high-pitched squeak – or screech – and a crunching of bone.

 

Akaashi turned just in time to see a black tail disappear into his owl’s beak as he swallowed the nightmare. Bokuto turned and smiled at him.

 

For a moment Akaashi thought this was a continuation of the paralysis. But he was sitting up – actually sitting up – and he could move and breathe just fine. Besides, he felt none of the fear the paralysis brought.

 

Bokuto was grinning because he had taken on a human form. And – Akaashi couldn’t help but think – a really nice one. Even if his hair, sticking up like ear tuffs, was a bit ridiculous and mid-drift baring shirts weren’t exactly en vogue.

 

Bokuto sat down next to him, occupying the same space the shadow-thing had a minute before. Instead of that disconnected terror, though, he seemed to be almost _radiating_ love. He was close enough that Akaashi could feel the warmth from his skin.

 

Then he wrapped his arms around Akaashi’s shoulders and pulled him in close. If Akaashi hadn’t been convinced of his realness before, he certainly was now.

 

“You’re safe with me,” Bokuto said. He was solid and warm, his grip strong. And if his voice was a little too loud for the moment, well – Akaashi didn’t really notice just then. Bokuto had pulled back slightly, cupping Akaashi’s chin, and pressed his lips against Akaashi’s.

 

The kiss was brief. Bokuto pulled away once again, and Akaashi had a moment’s worry that he would leave him and he pulled Bokuto back.

 

“Don’t leave,” he said into the crook of Bokuto’s neck.

 

“I won’t,” Bokuto replied. He smoothed down Akaashi’s hair with a hand, a soft, rhythmic gesture.

 

Akaashi only noticed the hand turning to a preening beak when the warmth of Bokuto’s human body disappeared. He was a weight on Akaashi’s shoulder, now, standing carefully so his talons didn’t dig in. The gentle motion didn’t stop.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pet Catalogue: Great horned owl (Bubo virginianus)
> 
> I’m not actually fully sure if Bokuto’s supposed to be a great horned owl (native to the Americas), or a northern white faced owl (native to Africa and popular in Japan), or something else entirely. For the sake of this fic, I went with a great horned – I know them fairly well, and they have golden eyes like Bokuto. They also on occasion make cat noises, which I found hilarious. Great horned owls are sacred to a bunch of different peoples in North America; they often appear as protective spirits, or fertility ones. I don’t think they have much to do with sleep paralysis (kanashibari, or iron binding, in Japanese) though. I added that angle, not so much because of anything in Haikyuu!!, but because I have a folklore prof who drilled the idea into my head. The tarantula I mentioned in passing is much the same – starting with the Ojibwe, spiders and spider webs are seen to have protective properties when it comes to dreams. (This is condensed, but…) The little bead or gem in a dream catcher represents the spider who eats bad dreams. I was taught not to touch it or else the dreams would return to you, but I don’t know if this is a particularly common teaching.
> 
> Fun fact of the day: Hiroyuki Takei, author of the manga Shaman King, had a pet owl named Horokko. I guess this owes some inspiration to Horokko-chan, too!
> 
> I only now realise how close this chapter was to the first one of Shin Pet Shop. Oops… (Though that was a baku and the set-up was different...) (I also know that TokyoPop’s translation of Wu Fei’s nickname as Taizuu is incorrect – I just don’t know what it actually is.)


	3. Helping Hand

It was raining. The city smelled like it, and it slicked Tsukishima’s hair down to his skull. He hadn’t thought to bring his umbrella that morning, and his coat had no hood. It was irritating, but as long as he kept a straight face it wouldn’t bother him. It was just a pain that he had to walk home from work.

 

He was walking through a grove of trees when he heard something. He paused. It had sounded like a voice calling for help. When the call came again, he realised his mistake – it was a crow, cawing and sounding like it was hurt.

 

Tsukishima frowned. There wasn’t anyone else around – and if he just left it, some child might approach the injured bird and get themselves hurt.

 

The bird had pulled itself under a hydrangea bush, its soaked feathers fluffed up as it gave a weak craw. Three other crows had surrounded it, pecking at its feather and wings. It tried to protect its right wing, which it held at an awkward angle. It looked broken. If he left them there, the three crows would probably tear the injured on apart.

 

“Hey!” Tsukishima called. The three birds looked up, one taking barely any notice of them and turning around to stab at the injured crow. Tsukishima waved an arm as he ran up, trying to scare them off. It didn’t look like it would work but they took off when he got close enough. They circled upwards, cawing angrily, but didn’t dive back down.

 

Tsukishima turned to the injured crow. It was trying to pull itself deeper under the hydrangeas, like it thought he was going to hurt it too, its feathers soaked and sticking out. It looked pathetic.

 

He took of his coat and laid it on the ground, trying to coax the bird onto it with scraps of food from his lunch. It was only a crow, but there must be a vet clinic or something nearby that could help it.

 

The coaxing worked, and the bird hopped awkwardly onto Tsukishima’s jacket. It gave his fingers a nip that it probably thought meant gratitude. Tsukishima frowned at it and gently wrapped it in his coat, trying not to hurt it further.

 

“Whatcha got there, mister?” a boy’s voice asked from over his shoulder.

 

Tsukishima turned around. A foreign kid with long hair and large golden eyes and heavy golden earrings was leaning over him, curious to the point of nosiness.

 

“Oh, a crow?” the boy asked. “Is it injured?”

 

“… It looks like its wing was broken,” Tsukishima replied. He didn’t really want to be talking to this brat, especially if he’d have to carry the bird to some clinic or another. He’d have to look it up on his phone, probably, since he didn’t think most animal clinics would even take a wild animal in.

 

“Hmm,” said the boy. “Give me a minute! I think I know someone who can help.”

 

He ran off into the trees. Tsukishima stood up, cradling the bundle and not really expecting the kid to return. He did though, dragging an adult behind him. The man was wearing some sort of weird long Chinese-style jacket, carrying an umbrella that looked more like a parasol. He also looked like he had a tanuki on his shoulder and a shaggy – dog? Sheep? – at his heels. It had horns, so a sheep was more likely. Tsukishima was pretty sure that couldn’t be, though, so he chalked it up to not having enough sleep. He had enough troubles as it was.

 

“Fehmut, please –“ the man said, then stopped when he saw Tsukishima and his bundle. “What happened here?”

 

“There’s an injured crow,” the kid – Fehmut – explained. “Can you help him, Count?”

 

The Count looked over the crow in Tsukishima’s hands. He definitely didn’t _look_ like someone who worked with animals, but maybe looks were deceiving. It would at least help in explaining the tanuki and the sheep-thing.

 

He sighed. “Fehmut, I’m _not_ a veterinarian.” He looked over to Tsukishima. “I run a pet shop in Neo-Chinatown, in Kabuki-chou. You must forgive my ward, he can become a little over excited when animals are…”

 

The crow in Tsukishima’s hands gave a weak croak. The Count frowned.

 

“Do you… Know of a clinic that would treat a crow?” Tsukishima asked. If he ran a pet store, than maybe he would know a place.

 

The bird gave another solemn sound, and Tsukishima realised its head was poking out of the jacket. He balanced one of the sleeves over it so that rain wasn’t splashing it in the face.

 

The Count gave another sigh.

 

“All right. Pon-chan, get down from there,” he said to the tanuki. “I can take this child in, I suppose. He’ll do well with us, so there’s no need to worry.”

 

“Right,” Tsukishima said. 

 

The Count took the bird up, cradling it in one arm. “Well then, Your Highness, Pon-chan, T-chan. It’s about time we start heading home.”

 

“Okay!” Fehmut replied.

 

Tsukishima could have sworn he’d heard another voice or two replying, like he had when the crow was calling for him. He really needed more sleep.

 

The Count and the kid left then, and Tsukishima found himself standing alone in the rain once again.

 

“Ah, my coat…” he said, realising that his shirt was now soaked through. He tried to find the Count again, but the man and his entourage seemed to have vanished. So instead, he made his way home. He wondered if the crow would be alright.

 

*

 

“So let me get this straight,” Count D said, drying his hands off on a towel. “You were trying to find your way home when you wound up trespassing in another flock’s territory, and _that’s_ why you were attacked?”

 

The crow nodded. He kept his eyes down, his dark hair falling into his face. He was hunched over like he was still expecting blows. The Count had redressed his wounds, putting a patch on the large gash across his cheek, wrapping up the injured ankle, and putting his reset arm into a sling. He looked better for a night’s sleep and for having dried off.

 

“And that man saved you?”

 

Another nod.

 

“And now you want to repay him.”

 

The crow gave a third nod, a blush creeping across his freckled cheeks.

 

D sighed mournfully. “I suppose I could help you with that, but it really would be better for you to stay here until you’re fully healed.”

 

“Yeah, crows are pests, aren’t they?” Fehmut said. He was lounging on a couch, surrounded by a handful of the Count’s she-cats and at least one of his toms, basking in their adoration.

 

The crow looked down, his face turning even redder under the veil of his hair.

 

“Your Highness!” D hissed. “Be nice to our guest!”

 

Fehmut frowned, while D collected himself.

 

“Well, Tadashi,” he said, addressing the crow. “You can stay here. Perhaps you’ll get the chance to repay that human, but believe me – you’re better off without involving yourself with him.” He could have given the young bird fifty different reasons why humans were ungrateful and not worth anyone’s time, with personal anecdotes to illustrate, if he had thought it would help.

 

“Not that you can say much on that, Count,” T-chan said. “I mean, you’ve a thing for blonds, too, right?”

 

“I thought his current pet had black hair,” Ten-chan put in. He was leaning over the edge of the couch Fehmut was laying on and using a tabby cat’s shoulders for balance. The tabby seemed rather displeased with this situation.

 

“Would the two of you _be quiet_?” D said. His glare was mostly what managed to quiet the two. Carnivores silenced, he turned back to Tadashi. “But please, help yourself to some food in the meanwhile.”

 

“… Yes,” Tadashi replied. He still wasn’t looking the Count in the eye, but D knew he would be able to do so it his own time.

 

There was a knock at the front door, and D realised he may have semi-purposefully forgotten to unlock it. If it was Wu-fei, though, he was slamming it back in his face. He was not amongst the wild creatures D felt like dealing with right then. Besides, it was coming up to tea time and he didn’t feel much like putting up with Wu-fei’s table manners.

 

He opened the door, but instead of his surly employer he found the blond young man who’d found Tadashi, looking rather out of place.

 

That brightened the Count’s mood somewhat.

 

“ _Hello_ ,” he said, smiling. “I’m amazed you found us so quickly.”

 

The young man hesitated a moment. “You took my jacket, yesterday. I came to get it back.”

 

“Ah, of course!” D had completely forgotten about that. Things like other people’s clothing never really occurred to him. “You came all this way just for that? Come in, we were just about to have tea.”

 

“It was an expensive jacket,” the young man said. He followed D in anyway.

 

Pon-chan, ever astute, had found the young man’s jacket, which someone had cleaned so it was no longer covered in crow blood. She offered it up to him, and the young man seemed to take that in stride.

 

“Please call me Count D,” D said. “Welcome to my pet shop. We sell all manner of creatures, so please, have a look around.”

 

“I’m Tsukishima Kei,” he replied. He glanced around, clearly trying to make it look like he wasn’t interested. But there was something he wanted, D could tell. “Is the – is the crow all right?”

 

D gave a soft smile. Maybe Tadashi’s instincts were right. They were certainly better than this human’s.

 

“Why don’t you see him for yourself?” He gestured towards Tadashi, who, to Tsukishima’s eyes, was laying on a pillow, his wing splinted and feathers pulled in to reveal how small the bird actually was.

 

Tsukishima seemed to give a small sigh, like he was relieved to see him doing well.

 

“Were you worried?”

 

Tsukishima looked up at him, apparently startled by the Count’s words. D found this terribly amusing – humans could be that way sometimes, though he never did understand why they’d bothered to hide their feelings that way. Animals were so much nicer to deal with.

 

“It’s good that he’s doing well,” he said.

 

Under his gaze, it seemed that Tadashi was blushing heavily. Maybe if the child didn’t insist on swallowing his words than the two of them would be able to communicate.

 

The Count sighed. It looked like he was back to playing matchmaker – though Pon-chan would most likely point out that was supposed to be his job. “Perhaps it would be best if I suggested you bring him home with you? I have many animals here, and this is a business – it may become detrimental to Tadashi’s health if he stayed here.”

 

“Tadashi?” Tsukishima asked.

 

“Ah, it’s the child’s name. But in light of that, would you be able to take him home? He will fly off on his own when he is ready, but as of now all you need to do is ensure that he has food, water, and means to amuse himself in a safe environment. He will not be a troublesome house guest, I assure you.”

 

He thought for a moment that Tsukishima would refuse – Tadashi certainly looked worried that he would – but after a few moments Tsukishima nodded.

 

“That’s wonderful news,” D said with a smile. “I will get you a cage to transport him home in.”

 

And so that was how Tsukishima found himself carrying a fairly sizeable covered bird cage home. The Count had given him a list of foods to buy for the bird – what had he called it? Tadashi, right. Tsukishima wasn’t convinced he should be giving a name to a bird that was only going to fly off in a matter of weeks, but he supposed it was better than just calling him “it.” The Count had said that calling him by name might help him get better, too.

 

He set the cage down on the table and took off the covering. Inside the cage, Tadashi looked despondent, but fluffed up and turned to look at Tsukishima, giving a small croak.

 

“… I guess you’re hungry,” Tsukishima said. He didn’t have most of the ingredients the Count had suggested to give a crow, so he’d have to go buy those. And possibly a book on caring for birds, not that he was sure the local bookstore would have anything about crows.

 

He set down a bowl of water in the cage, removing his hand before Tadashi could peck him. The crow hesitantly hopped towards it, taking a couple sips.

 

Tsukishima sighed. “I’ll be back soon with food. Don’t make too much noise.”

 

Apparently though, Tsukishima shouldn’t have worried, then or ever. Tadashi proved himself to be unusually silent for a crow, and just as well behaved. Tsukishima had taken to leaving the bird cage open when he was in the house. He would pick him up, gently, and place him on the table or on his should and walk around with him there. The crow was surprisingly intelligent, for a bird, and would follow along, helping where his size and injuries would allow him. It came to the point where Tsukishima found himself talking to Tadashi, pointlessly since the bird clearly couldn’t understand him. But there were times when it seemed like he could, hopping closer and butting his head against Tsukishima’s hand and looking up at him with shining black eyes.

 

The thought of having to release Tadashi when his injuries healed disappeared from Tsukishima’s mind almost entirely. Even when Tadashi regained strength and started flying short distances across the apartment, or when Tsukishima removed the bandages on his wing and foot, it never really occurred to Tsukishima what that meant. He’d taken to leaving the balcony door open – it was no longer cold out, and he figured Tadashi could use the fresh air.

 

One afternoon, he was awakened by a clank of talons on metal, blinking as he realised he had fallen asleep on his couch. He looked over, trying to find Tadashi – he was fairly sure the crow had been perched next to him when he had fallen asleep.

 

Tadashi was sitting on the outside railing. Tsukishima blinked, and frowned as he stood up, because instead of a crow he looked like a boy – shorter than Tsukishima, it looked, with black hair as shaggy as his feathers had been, and a black coat worn over his shoulders rather than forced over an arm that, though healed, still looked delicate. Well then.

 

Tadashi looked down, blushing slightly, before working up his courage once more and looking Tsukishima in the eye.

 

“I just wanted to say… thank you,” he said. He smiled, and Tsukishima felt his heart twist. “Thank you for saving me. And for taking care of me. I didn’t know if I’d be able to tell you this, but I just wanted to make sure I said that before I left-“

 

Tsukishima didn’t let him finish before he reached out and grabbed his hand. Tadashi blinked, like he didn’t know what was going on.

 

“Don’t go,” Tsukishima said. He had gotten used to having the small crow around. Tadashi hadn’t said anything until now, but he hadn’t needed too. It had been his company, his willingness to listen and stay close to Tsukishima, even just in these daily activities, that had endeared the crow to him. And now, he just… He just didn’t want him to leave.

 

Tadashi’s hand was warm in his. Tsukishima tightened his grip, like that would keep him from flying off.

 

“I don’t want you to leave me alone.”

 

Tadashi hesitated, then put his other hand over on Tsukishima’s. Then, to Tsukishima’s surprise and relief, he stepped down from the rail.

 

“Well… I suppose I could stay longer,” he said. “There’s no one waiting for me, after all.”

 

Tsukishima pulled him into a hug, surprising himself. He must have surprised Tadashi as well, as he stiffened in Tsukishima’s hold.

 

“You have me,” Tsukishima said.

 

Tadashi nodded, wrapping his arms around Tsukishima’s back and burrowing his face into his shoulder.

 

“… Thank you.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pet Catalogue: Jungle crow (Corvus macrorhynchos) 
> 
> I don’t know much at all about keeping or healing birds, and the internet is shockingly unhelpful for finding information. Most of the advice boils down to “Call a local bird shelter,” which is practical in real life but not so much for writing. So please forgive how sparse this chapter was on description!
> 
> The main species of crow in Japan is the jungle crow. They’re bigger than American crows, and have really big beaks, to the point where they can be mistaken for ravens. They’re seen as pests in Japan because of their size and numbers but they, along with wolves, were worshipped as the messengers of the sun goddess Amaterasu. In fact, a lot of mythologies have stories where wolves and ravens or crows have a close connection, probably based off of observations of actual animals. 
> 
> For another interesting fact: the kanji for crow (烏) and bird (鳥) differ by only a couple of strokes. Hence why people keep reading Karasuno as Torino. (I... didn’t know this until I was researching jungle crows for this fic. Bad Japanese student!)


	4. Humdrum

_A pet shop, eh?_ Iwaizumi thought, looking over the sign and door. They looked pretty tacky for belonging to a pet shop. But he supposed he had a few minutes to spend inside – he’d rather look at animals than clothes, not that he could afford much of either.

 

The first thing he noticed upon opening the door was the smell. It didn’t smell like a regular pet shop, but rather faintly of incense. That was a good sign, he supposed, though he had to wonder if the pets were okay with it. The second thing he noticed was that there were animals everywhere, laying about on the floor or furniture. That seemed unsafe, both for them and the guests. He made sure not to step on any of them as he walked in.

 

He had to admit, though, the creatures were pretty cute. Something about their lazy attitudes made him wish he could have taken one home. He hadn’t realised it until then, but the sight of two small rabbits lying side by side on a pillow, half asleep, made him realise just how stressed he was. He was distracted enough by them that he didn’t notice someone walking up to him.

 

“May I help you?” a voice asked.

 

Iwaizumi turned, half worried that he was trespassing. Then he remembered that the sign had said they were open so he was perfectly justified being here.  This man was probably the owner, given that he was walking around with something that looked suspiciously like a tanuki on his shoulders. It looked like its claws would probably tear the nice fabric of his outfit. The man looked pretty welcoming, though.

 

“Is this your shop?” Iwaizumi asked. It was something of an automatic response, but it was also a legitimate question.

 

“It is my grandfather’s,” the man replied. “I’m merely tending it in his absence.”

 

Okay, maybe the man’s mismatched eyes were a little off-putting.

 

“We have many animals here,” he went on. “From big to small, we have something for everyone and every lifestyle…”

 

“I can’t,” Iwaizumi said. Then, when the man looked at him, he elaborated, “I work long hours and have no time off – I couldn’t manage a pet on top of that. It wouldn’t be right, no matter how much I wanted to.”

 

Surprisingly for a shop-keeper who’d just been denied a sale, the man’s smile grew. “Well then, if I cannot interest you in a pet… Perhaps this would suit?” He gestured, a small but almost theatrical motion, indicating something just behind him.

 

Iwaizumi frowned. He was pretty sure that what he had indicated – some sort of small, odd-looking plant in a plain pot – hadn’t been there before. Also, that pet shops didn’t sell plants.

 

“A plant?” He was asking all the intelligent questions today.

 

“They require no care, just some water, sunshine, and perhaps being spoken to on occasion. They are the perfect pet for one such as yourself.”

 

Iwaizumi looked it over. It certainly didn’t _look_ troublesome, and maybe some greenery would cheer up his dreary little apartment.

 

“It’s not poisonous, is it?”

 

“… Were you planning on eating it?” the man asked dryly. “I assure you, it is quite safe.”

 

He supposed he couldn’t really refuse. Plus, a plant had to be on the cheap side.

 

“How much is it?”

 

Another calm, mysterious smile. “For now, perhaps we could consider it a trial period? If your life improves, you can return with my payment. If not, then we can consider ourselves even.”

 

That didn’t seem like especially good business sense, but that meant it would probably be free.

 

“Sounds like a deal,” he replied.

 

And so that was how Iwaizumi found himself in a Shinjuku train station, holding a potted plant and a bottle of plant food. He sighed, looking it over in the hard light. It was a rather nice plant, he supposed, with a blue-ish tinge to its leaves. He wondered how big it would grow, or if it would flower. The shop-keeper had never answered his question about what kind of plant it was. He would have to look it up online later – surely someone would know.

 

He hoped his train would get there fast. There was a chill in the air, and he’d hate it if the plant died on him so quick, free or not.

 

*

 

It was too late by the time Iwaizumi got back to do much more than put the plant on a shelf and collapse on his bed, still wearing his day clothes. Apparently he had been more tired than he had thought. His sleep was deep and dreamless, and it took a combination of his alarm and the smell of miso soup cooking to wake him.

 

Then he realised that there should be no one cooking in his kitchen and sat up, wide awake.

He could see someone – a man – in his kitchen, and while cooking was the least threatening thing he could be doing, it still didn’t answer the question of how he had gotten in.

 

“Excuse me?” he asked.

 

The man looked up and over at him, smiling. Iwaizumi was a little shocked to find that he was _really_ good looking – though that probably only meant that he was secretly an axe-murderer or something. At least he was wearing clothes.

 

“Oh good! You’re awake!” the stranger replied. “This’ll be ready in jus’ a minute.”

 

“I’m sorry, but – who the hell are you?  What the hell are you doing here?”

 

The stranger fucking _laughed_ , like Iwaizumi should already know the answer to that. “You took me home last night! You can call me Tooru.”

 

Panic stabbed at Iwaizumi’s heart – had he forgotten doing something like that? – before he realised no, that was insane. He hadn’t even been a bit drunk, so unless something especially bad had happened, this man was lying.

 

It took Iwaizumi a minute to realise, but the stranger was talking in Sendai-ben. Iwaizumi hadn’t heard anyone speak it in quite some time. Since he’d come to Tokyo, in fact – he just had no one around him who spoke the dialect he grew up with. It was almost comforting to hear it again.

 

Then he remembered what was going on. He glanced around the apartment, trying to see if anything had been taken or moved. Everything was still in its place, except –

 

“Hey. What happened t’the plant that was right here?”

 

The man turned around, still smiling wildly. “I’m the plant! Can’tcha tell?” He was pointing his index fingers to the corners of his mouth, like that was supposed to inform Iwaizumi of something.

 

“… No.”

 

Tooru fucking _pouted_ at that. It would have been cute if he weren’t _still in Iwaizumi’s house_. “It’s true though. Look, your brain’s clearly non-operational ‘cause you’re hungry. Please eat.”

 

He had set out an entire fucking breakfast on Iwaizumi’s table. Iwaizumi didn’t even know when he had had the time to make it, because he certainly hadn’t heard a single sound from the kitchen while asleep. It looked like good food, too, and probably not poisoned.

 

Gingerly he took a seat at the table, figuring that if Tooru was going to kill him, he already would have.

 

Instead, he watched Iwaizumi as he ate, in a way that probably should have been creepier than it was. When Iwaizumi was finished. Tooru cleared the plates.

 

“You can’t stay, though,” Iwaizumi said, realising everything he had done so far contradicted this statement.

 

“You’re not even goin’t’give it the whole trial period?” Tooru asked. He sounded genuinely disappointed.

 

“Trial -? Ugh, whatever.” He went over to his bed, picking up his phone from the bedside table. “Listen, I have to go to work. When I come back, I don’t want to see you here at all, okay?”

 

“I can’t say I recommend work at all today…” Tooru said.

 

Iwaizumi turned, trying to figure out what he was doing, and Tooru snatched the phone out of his hand, somehow unlocking it. The little creep _had_ been through his things after all.

 

“No – give that _back!_ ” But Tooru had already dialed a number.

 

“Yes, hello? Ah, I’m callin’ Iwaizumi-kun in sick for him.”

 

Iwaizumi felt his stomach drop, realising Tooru was talking to his boss’ secretary.

 

“Oh, no he should be fine in a couple a’ days, but for now he really needs his bed rest. Doctor’s orders!”

 

He grinned at Iwaizumi and Iwaizumi found himself very close to throttling him, murder charges be damned. He was sure he could get acquitted on the grounds of this guy being an annoying freak.

 

“Ah yes, thank you, ma’am. My cousin appreciates it.” He turned off the phone and threw it onto the couch, away from Iwaizumi.

 

“So we’re _cousins_ , now?”

 

Tooru shrugged. “No one’d ever believe that we’re brothers.”

 

“Mostly because I don’t _got_ any.”

 

"Regardless, I got you outta work for the day."

 

"I was _expected_. I was workin’ towards a better position, but if I miss even one day of work-"

 

Tooru shrugged. "If that's all it takes t’jeopardize your position, you don't need it. What you _do_ need is a break."

 

"I don't-" Iwaizumi couldn't finish his sentence before Tooru shoved him onto his bed. Tooru sat in his lap before Iwaizumi could try to get up again, using his weight to keep him down, and began undoing the buttons of Iwaizumi’s shirt.

 

"What’re you doing," he asked flatly.

 

"These’re your work clothes," Tooru said. "From _yesterday_. They can't have been comfortable t’sleep or anythin’ in. Also, you can kiss me if you want."

 

Iwaizumi was so busy trying to prove he could remove his own damn shirt that he nearly missed this last bit.

 

"What?"

 

Tooru shrugged. "You looked like you might wanna kiss me, is all."

 

Iwaizumi was fairly sure that was ridiculous.

 

Then again, stranger or no, he _was_ very cute, and so far he hadn’t _really_ done anything to harm Iwaizumi, beyond being in his house uninvited and being annoying.

 

"... Are you really that plant?"

 

Tooru nodded. "Special variety, and all."

 

He winked.

 

Well. Apparently Iwaizumi didn't have work today, thanks to this guy. And he smelled really nice. And he had that stupid familiar accent that somehow managed to make him more attractive, rather than less. And maybe he was right - Iwaizumi did need to take a break from things.

 

He put a hand against Tooru's cheek, finding him warm.

 

"Are ya sure?"

 

Tooru's smile was brilliant. "Yes, course I am."

 

Iwaizumi let him take off the rest of his clothes, running his hands through his hair. He paused when he felt Tooru's lips brush his skin, and Tooru hesitated as well.

 

"What's wrong?" he asked.

 

"... You're not poisonous, are you? I don't want t’end up with poison ivy rash or anythin’."

 

Tooru smacked him with a pillow. "You're so mean, constantly askin’ that! No. I'm not!"

 

"Just checkin’," Iwaizumi said.

 

"Do you want me to continue?"

 

Iwaizumi closed his eyes, nodding. For a plant, Tooru certainly seemed very human. And maybe Iwaizumi figured, if upkeep really was as simple as the shop-owner had said, it wouldn't be so bad...

 

Though admittedly, when he got the invoice a few days later, the fact that it asked for cake in payment probably should have tipped him off that there was something going on even weirder than he had suspected.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pet Catalogue: Parry’s agave (Agave parryi)
> 
> I’ve seen a bunch of different ways to localize Tohoku-ben, the dialect spoken in northern Japan, including Swedish, Texan, Italian (!), Irish and just plain leaving it out. It’s considered a bit of “country bumpkin” kind of accent and the Southern Tohoku spoken in Miyagi is not especially thick. So, in order to not step on anyone’s toes, I decided to write it here as my own accent in English. Because sometimes, phonetic accents are the only way the reader will know they’re actually there. Plus it kind of fits, don’t you think?
> 
> On that note… What kind of plant is Oikawa here? I had nothing specific in mind while writing, so I randomly decided on Parry’s agave, a hot weather plant from Mexico with blue-grey green leaves. Since I was trying to keep animals as close to their team’s mascots, I was originally not going to do Aoba Johsai, but then I remembered that the Count on occasion did sell plants. Mostly to Leon and often with hilarious consequences, but it did happen.
> 
> This is going to be the last of these, for a while at least. School’s back on and I have some other fanfiction projects to work on, but given the positive response, I might come back for a ‘volume’ two!

**Author's Note:**

> Pet Catalogue: Oriental Shorthair x Russian Blue (Felis silvestris catus)
> 
> Oriental shorthairs are exactly as described here: long-tailed, athletic, curious, loud and talkative. The preferred eye-colour for the breed is even green! Bar country of origin (the breed is actually from the West, but derived from the same line as Siamese and the like), they’re basically the cat version of Lev. Russian Blues have some similar qualities: they're intelligent, playful and green-eyed, and I'd be remiss if I didn't bring up Lev's heritage somehow. Many Russian Blue lines also have Siamese in them due to shortages of breeding stock after World War Two. They're quieter than Orientals, but both breeds develop strong bonds with their owners. I don't really know what a crossbreed between them would be like, though.
> 
> I love cats and will write about them for many, many pages. While working on this, I was watching videos of Orientals on YouTube and they made me really want one. Some day!


End file.
